Articles by Humphrey Carter

Technology

“One of the greatest social conquests since WWII has been the tourism relationship between Spain and the UK”

The director of the Spanish Tourist Office UK, Manuel Butler, is extremely proud of the fact that ABTA has decided to celebrate its 75th anniversary by holding its annual convention in Calvia, setting a record for the number of times the travel association has held the event in a single destination - Mallorca. “It’s the perfect location for the British travel industry to mark this milestone for ABTA. Tourism is in Mallorca’s DNA, it’s a flagship for the global industry and, along with the rest of Spain, it’s the champion destination by far. “The British dominate the market by miles, it nearly doubles its closest rivals and testimony to that is ABTA holding its fourth convention in Mallorca,” he said before going to make the bold statement: “One of the greatest social conquests since the Second World War has been the relationship between Spain and the United Kingdom when it comes to tourism. The two countries have been champions in the field since the 50s and 60s and I see no reason for that changing.” It has been another strong season for the British market and Butler is deeply encouraged to see high demand during September and October and through the low season shoulder months into next year. “These are increasingly important months, not just for the tourist industry but for social sustainability in destinations dependent on tourism like Mallorca and other parts of Spain. In fact it’s a global problem and one we’ve been working on for a while now. It’s just that over the past few years it has come to the forefront through protests in a number of key destinations from Mallorca to Mexico City. So we need to look at the impact tourism is having. “I think that the key is putting the positive impacts of tourism at the centre of the debate for people. “We also have to think of tourism as a social phenomenon and that’s something that we’ve forgotten. “Today, as globalisation is receding, tourism is more needed than ever as a force for good,” he said. “So we need to be thinking and planning long term. We have not seen the protests have a negative impact in bookings to Mallorca but they are being carefully watched. We know that and we have to be careful that they don’t damage the image of destinations. These are not anti-tourism demonstrations but events can get exaggerated, so we need more social sustainable communication. “Especially when demand for holidays is continuing to grow, so we need to have an economic and social balance to maintain a healthy status quo. It is important to distinguish between specific local tensions and the broader national picture. The vast majority of Spain remains enthusiastic in welcoming tourists. “Where protests have occurred – in cities such as Barcelona, Palma and Santa Cruz – concerns stem from broader societal issues: housing pressures, rising costs of living, and environmental strain in high-density areas. We need to be aware of the fact that we need to find a solution, develop a new model to prevent problems further down the road because the number of flights and travellers is only going to rise,” he said. “That said, while demand goes up, so too do prices and that’s down to numerous factors from global inflation to geopolitics. And that does have a knock-on effect in destinations, so the industry has to be careful with its pricing from flights to accommodation and all along the food chain. It’s always the middle class, which accounts for the majority of tourism, which feels the squeeze the most, so the industry has to be price sensitive. “But there are other factors which we have and are taking into account, such as climate change. It is playing a large part in reshaping the industry from how and when people travel, where they travel to, how the airline and hotel industries operate in a more eco-friendly and sustainable world. This is why the ABTA convention in Mallorca is so important because all of these are not only going to be on the table but the captains of the UK travel industry, tour operators like Jet2 and TUI, will be present. “And being hosted in Calvia, the delegates and the British travel industry as a whole will be able to see what can be done, how these problems can be addressed and overcome. Calvia is a perfect example of how Mallorca’s tourist industry is moving forward and in the right direction, as is most of Spain. “Calvia is one of the eight municipalities in Spain which hosts the highest number of visitors, some 20 percent of the international demand. So Calvia is one of the keys in the cog and we can’t let this positive circle break,” Butler stressed. “There is growing competition, especially in the Mediterranean with the likes of Turkey, Greece, Egypt and Morocco pushing hard with long-term strategies. Turkey, for example, has devalued its currency at least four times against the pound to attract more British tourists. But does that lead to better social welfare for the local population? This is an important question we all need to ask and is it a sustainable model for a well-developed, long-established and solid tourist industry like Spain? Spain is well known for its quality service, high standards, world-leading professionalism, value for money, security and safety. All these form and shape peoples’ image and perspective of a holiday destination while making it extremely attractive and popular. Hence why some 20 million Britons come to Spain every year. It’s the UK’s number one destination. “The majority of Britons feel at home in Spain, they know they can relax and they are safe,” he added. “And a clear demonstration in Spain’s strength as a world leading tourist destination is that it will not be bossed about by airlines like Ryanair because, as we’ve seen, all available slots will simply be filled by other airlines, while new routes are constantly opening up like to the United States and Abu Dhabi. “But destinations like Mallorca and the Balearics can’t afford to take their eye off the ball when it comes to promotion. “The competing countries I mentioned are all running major publicity campaigns in the UK media so one can’t afford to be too much out of the public eye. Nothing can ever be taken for granted. “The Spanish islands have even got tough competition from domestic markets. We’ve seen significant increases in the number of Britons going to holiday to northern Spain during the summer to avoid the extreme heat during the peak months, so there are lots of factors which have to be taken into account and addressed at the ABTA convention.”